Coronado Springs Resort in Orlando, Florida

Located in the Walt Disney World Resort, Coronado Springs is really a vacation destination in itself! The theme of this gorgeous resort is a Southwestern / Spanish feel, and of course true to Disney, no detail is spared. We recently spent 8 days at Coronado Springs, and we felt like we had only just begun to explore all the resort has to offer.

The Coronado Springs Resort is conveniently located between Disney's Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. When you pull into the entrance, you will stop at a security station where you will asked for photo identification if you have not checked in yet. Once you check in, you can simply use your room key to raise the security gate, bypassing the guard station. While this may be a minor inconvenience, we didn't mind using this system, and it is nice that Disney has guest safety in mind.

Once you enter the resort, there is a small parking area that leads to the main lobby, which houses the check-in desks, concierge, bell services, a gift shop, 2 restaurants, a "grab and go" convenience store, and a night club. I have reviews for The Pepper Market, and Maya Grill, Coronado Springs' two restaurants, here on Associated Content for reference.

The main lobby is a beautiful sight in itself- there is a fountain the middle of the lobby with a breathtaking vaulted ceiling. There are numerous desks staffed with friendly castmembers, and we did not have to wait to check in, even though the lobby seemed full. We arrived earlier than the 3:00 pm check-in time, but our room was ready, and the castmember took his time to explain a little bit about the resort, as well as answer any questions we had about our stay. Pictures of the gorgeous lobby area can be found here on Buzz2001's Unofficial Coronado Springs Resort Website.

Connected to the main lobby is a very large convention center (95,000 square feet!) that can be divided into 45 different rooms. Also located in this building is a business center, which was a wonderful touch to the hotel. There were 4 computers located here that we used to check our email, print boarding passes, and check the weather for our flights home. The cost to use this service is $10 for 15 minutes; pretty pricey, but worth it to us. The business center also has shipping services where you can bring souvenirs or other belongings to have shipped home. We saw conferences coming and going during our stay, but they were never a distraction during our vacation. In fact, since most of the conferences were in session during the days, we enjoyed having the pools almost to ourselves! We did notice a bit more of a "party" atmosphere in the evenings just outside of the main lobby at the outdoor bar, but besides a little extra noise, there was no real issues.

Since Coronado Springs is used most often for conventions, it is one of the largest resorts on property, containing 1,967 rooms. The rooms are all set around a 15 acre central lake, named the Lago Dorado, which features a marina where you can rent boats, bikes and surreys. The guests rooms are located in separate buildings that are divided into three very distinct "cities." Located to the left of El Centro (the main lobby) are the Casitas, which means "little houses." The buildings open up to beautiful courtyards containing pristine landscaping, fountains and other water features, statues and benches to just sit and enjoy your surroundings. The colors on the buildings here are very inviting; bright and warm. Since the Casitas are located closest to the main convention center, most of the rooms are used for attendees. Also located in the Casitas are a full-service salon, and a fitness center.

To the right side of El Centro is the Cabanas buildings, themed with more of a "beachy" atmosphere. Here you will find 2 story buildings that have more of a bungalow type of look. This theme is carried out in the cozy hammocks situated over the white sand close to the water of Lago Dorado. The Cabanas buildings have considerably less rooms than the 1,024 rooms of the Casitas, coming in at only 319.

The last section of guest rooms is located across the lake from El Centro, and is called the Ranchos section. This is the section that we stayed in, and we loved how quiet the Ranchos buildings were; we were away from the hustle and bustle, and felt very secluded from everyone else, which was welcomed while on vacation. The theming here is more of a southwestern feel; the buildings have a rugged look to them, and the landscaping includes large rocks, cacti and stones to add to the feel of the southwest. We had a rental car during our stay, and we were thankful for that once we saw the location of our room; we stayed in building 7A, which is located at the farthest point from El Centro. While the walk was not bad for my husband or I to get to the main lobby, it was about three-quarters of a mile, which was a lot for my 4 year old son to handle after a long day at the parks. The parking lots surround the entire resort, and we never had a problem getting a parking space very close to our building.

All of the rooms in Coronado Springs are about 314 square feet. As noted on Deb Wills on her site, AllEars.net, there are 1,718 rooms with double beds, 60 with king beds, and 99 handicapped-accessible rooms. I should note that Coronado Springs has recently changed to being a completely non-smoking hotel, but there are designated outdoor areas available for guests to smoke.

Since Coronado Springs is one of Disney World's moderate resorts, a small refrigerator is included in each room, which we found to be extremely helpful during our stay. We purchased milk and cereal in the gift shop, and were able to eat breakfasts in our rooms most mornings, which was convenient while we were getting ready to hit the parks. The rooms have a small table with 2 chairs, a bathroom with toilet, and tub/shower, with a sink outside the main bathroom. I thought that the vanity area could have used a bit more lighting, but it wasn't a huge issue. I did love the fact that there was a dark privacy curtain that could be used to close off the sink area from the main room; this was great in the mornings so I could get ready for the day while my son was still sleeping.

Amenities that are included in every guest room include the aforementioned refrigerator, a small wall safe, coffee maker, daily "mousekeeping," basic toiletries, room service, ironing board, and a hairdryer. There are laundry facilities at each of the three villages. The cost of the washers and dryers are $2.00 each, but the appliances worked very well; I did laundry once during our trip, and it was well worth the cost. Also, Walt Disney World Resort offers free bus transportation from all of its resorts to all four Disney Parks- Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios (previously MGM), and Epcot. The Disney transportation will also take you to DownTown Disney for plenty of shopping and Cirque Du Soleil, and also to any other resort on Disney property. This is very convenient, and there are bus stops located at various locations around the resort for easy accessibility. Other amenities are listed here on the Dis website.

Some of the extras that Coronado Springs has to offer include the pools and play areas for the kids. The Walt Disney World Resort is among the best places for going all out with their theming, and the main pool here is no exception! The pool is called "The Dig Site," and features a huge Mayan temple that spills water down into the main pool. We were there for opening one morning, before the water was turned on for the day. The lifeguards called all the kids over to the temple to chant to the "water gods" to turn on the water- great fun for the kids, and fun for us parents to watch the ceremony. There is a large water slide going into the pool, plenty of chairs and and chaise lounges to relax on, and a kiddie wading pool for the younger ones. There were always 3 lifeguards on duty during the pool's official hours, which were 10:00 am to 8:00 pm during our stay. Guests could swim at the pool after hours, but there were no lifeguards on duty; we took advantage of this one night, and I must say this pool is fabulous during the day, and even more spectacular at night under all the lights! One of the lifeguards pointed out to us that we could go over to the marina and rent a life jacket for our son free of charge to use at the pool, which was nice. The Dig Site also has a snack bar, an arcade, and a huge hot tub big enough for 20 people! There is also a play area for the kids to climb on, swing, dig, and well, just be kids. The pool is located next to the lake, and is within easy access to all three sections of guest rooms.

If a guest is looking for a more laid-back swim, each of the three villages at the resort has their own quiet pools. There are no lifeguards at these pools, and there are no towels available at the quiet pools like there are at the Dig Site; (we brought the towels from our room, and had mousekeeping replace them for us.) There are, however, restrooms located adjacent to the pools, and plenty of chairs and chaise lounges for guests. We found these pools to be a nice change of pace during our stay- they were almost always empty when we visited them, and it was a nice relaxing atmosphere to escape the noise and crowds at the Disney parks.

Walt Disney World's Coronado Spring Resort is a huge resort, but that is all part of its charm. The resort is absolutely gorgeous at night; we often took walks after dark, and found all the paths extremely well-lit and safe. There are 3 main bridges that extend across Lago Dorado to go to the adjoining sections of guest rooms, and it was truly breathtaking to look across the lake and see the lights of the other areas of this beautiful resort reflected off the water.

So, if you are planning a vacation to the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, I would absolutely recommend considering a stay at Coronado Springs. There is a feeling that you are staying in a totally different world when you are at this resort, and relaxation is easy to achieve as you meander the paths around this expansive resort. The Disney castmembers are always willing to help with anything you may need, and we were always greeted with a warm welcome and friendly smile. It is a resort that manages to instill that "magic" that only Disney can achieve, and we would certainly love to visit Coronado Springs again on a future vacation to Walt Disney World.